Lemos, Nunes e Salomão, 2020. Inglês

Autism and school interactions Research Report
Autism Spectrum Disorder and School Interactions: Classroom and

Schoolyard1
Transtorno do Espectro Autista e Interações Escolares: Sala de Aula e Pátio
Emellyne Lima de Medeiros Dias LEMOS2
Laísy de Lima NUNES3
Nádia Maria Ribeiro SALOMÃO4
ABSTRACT: This study aimed at analyzing interactional episodes of children with autism in the classroom and schoolyard
contexts, considering their peers and teachers. It is understood the relevance of school inclusion and specific social interactions that
occur in these contexts from the neurodevelopmental, socio-communicative and behavioral characteristics of children diagnosed
with Autism Spectrum Disorder. In order to do that, eight filming sessions were held in two private schools, with four teachers,
four children with autism and 42 children with typical development. The results were presented in quantitative terms, from the
frequencies of interactional episodes; and qualitative terms, from the description of four case studies containing excerpts from the
interactional episodes. In spite of the variations between the contexts, the complete interactional episodes were characterized by
the use of objects and dyadic mediations directed by the teachers to the autistic children. On the interactions between the pairs,
it is emphasized that these exchanges were more frequent during free activities in the context of the classroom. Finally, the role of
the study of the interactional episodes for the processes of research, evaluation and intervention in the school area is emphasized.
KEYWORDS: Autism. Social interaction. Educational inclusion.
RESUMO: Este estudo objetivou analisar episódios interacionais de crianças com autismo nos contextos de sala de aula e
pátio, considerando seus pares e professores. Entende-se a relevância da inclusão escolar e das interações sociais específicas que
ocorrem nesses contextos a partir das características neurodesenvolvimentais, sociocomunicativas e comportamentais das crianças
diagnosticadas com Transtorno do Espectro Autista. Para tanto, foram realizadas oito filmagens em duas escolas particulares, com
quatro professoras, quatro crianças com autismo e 42 crianças com desenvolvimento típico. Os resultados foram apresentados em
termos quantitativos, a partir das frequências de episódios interacionais; e qualitativos, a partir da descrição de quatro estudos de
caso contendo trechos dos episódios interacionais. Apesar das variações entre os contextos, os episódios interacionais completos
caracterizaram-se pelo uso de objetos e mediações diádicas dirigidas pelas professoras às crianças autistas. Sobre as interações entre
os pares, destaca-se que essas trocas foram mais frequentes durante as atividades livres no contexto de sala de aula. Por fim, ressalta-
se o papel do estudo dos episódios interacionais para os processos de pesquisa, avaliação e intervenção na área escolar.
PALAVRAS-CHAVE: Autismo. Interação social. Inclusão educacional.
1 Introduction
Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD), of multifactorial etiology (Posar & Visconti,
2017), affects early and chronically the development in the socio-communicative and
behavioral areas, causing damage to the overall functioning of the individuals affected
(American Psychiatric Association [APA], 2014). Irvin, Boyd and Odom (2015) and Paula,
Cunha, Silva and Teixeira (2017) point to variability in terms of degree of impact in areas such
as communication, learning, adaptation to activities of daily living and socialization.
1
http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/s1413-65382620000100005
2
PhD student in Social Psychology. Federal University of Paraíba. Center for Humanities and Letters. Graduate Program in Social
Psychology. João Pessoa/Paraíba/Brazil. Email: emellyne@gmail.com. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1927-3132
3
PhD in Social Psychology. Professor at the Federal University of Rondônia. Department of Psychology. Porto Velho/Rondônia/
Brazil. Email: laisynunes@gmail.com. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4673-6289
4
PhD in Psychology - University of Manchester. Postdoctoral - The University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Professor at the Federal
University of Paraíba. João Pessoa/Paraíba/Brazil. Email: nmrs@uol.com.br. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1305-7762
Rev. Bras. Ed. Esp., Bauru, v.26, n.1, p.51-66, Jan.-Mar., 2020 51
This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License.
LEMOS, E.L.M.D.; NUNES, L.L.; SALOMÃO, N.M.R.
The significant increase in the number of cases has been discussed in the literature
from: greater exposure to causal factors, broadening of diagnostic criteria and more trained
professionals for symptom identification, screening and diagnosis (Bishop et al., 2017). Even
in the face of inconclusive answers to this question, the social relevance of the theme stands
out, given the increase in the number of people fighting for their rights, looking for specialized
services and regular schools.
Regarding studies in school contexts, schools currently pay more attention to ASD
cases due to the popularization of the term through the media and public policies in Brazil
(Bandeira & Silva, 2017; Schmidt et al., 2016). Since 2008, the ASD student has been placed
as a target population for Special Education, and, in 2012, it was regulated that a person
with ASD is considered a person with disabilities for all legal purposes (Law no. 12.764 of
December 27, 2012). However, Cabral and Marin (2017), in their review study, state that
there is little research in the area at the national level, indicating the need for further studies
and greater incentive for the publication of inclusive practices.
Given these considerations, this study aims to analyze interactional episodes (IE)
of children with ASD in the classroom and schoolyard contexts, considering their peers and
their teachers. It departs from the historical-cultural theory by agreeing that social interactions
are constituent elements of human development. According to Vygotsky (2007), the higher
psychological functions, typically human, are built on and by the relationship between people.
They arise, first, in the social, external sphere, and then on the individual level, be internally
reconstructed and definitively internalized. The process of transformation from interpersonal to
intrapersonal level is the result of a set of events that occurred throughout development. Thus,
interactive contexts are characterized as situations that provide learning and development due
to symbolic mediation; therefore, “the path from object to child and from child to object passes
through another person” (Vygotsky, 2007, p. 20). It is also noteworthy to point out the inter-
influence during social exchanges where child is considered an active participant (Kuchirko,
Tafuro, & Tamis-LeMonda, 2017; Martins & Monteiro, 2017; Salomão, 2010).
2 Method
In this section, we initially present the research participants. Then, we discuss the
instruments used. Finally, the procedures for data collection in schools are described.
2.1 Participants
The study included 42 children with typical development, four male children
diagnosed with ASD and four teachers from two private regular schools in the city of João
Pessoa, Paraíba, Brazil, two classes from each school. The children were between 3 and 5 years
old and were from A, B and C economy class5. The criterion for choosing these participants
was accidental or convenience sampling, which is characterized by the researcher’s selection of
the most accessible members of the population.
5
The economic classes, according to the Getúlio Vargas Foundation (FGV), are defined based on family income per capita, and
class A with an income from R$11,262.00; B with an income between R$8,641.00 and R$11,261.00 and C between R$2,005.00
and R$8,640.00.
52 Rev. Bras. Ed. Esp., Bauru, v.26, n.1, p.51-66, Jan.-Mar., 2020
Considering the heterogeneity of the cases, Table 1 shows the characterization of

the children with ASD, all of them had interventions for at least six months and had attended
school for at least nine months. The children with ASD, except one, performed interventions in
associations that were not mentioned due to confidentiality reasons. Although the levels ranged
from mild to moderate, according to the Childhood Autism Rating Scale (CARS), only Mario
and Hugo were verbal, but had difficulties in functional language use and communicative
intent. Pedro and João did not have verbal communication, they showed interest in objects
and toys with functional behaviors before them, having João the characteristic of moderately
impaired visual and auditory responses and Hugo slightly impaired.
Schooling
Child School Age CARS* Kind of Interventions
time
Pedro 1 4.6 31 2 years S. Therap./ Psycho.
João 2 3.3 34 9 months Assoc./ Mot. Act./ S. Therap.
Mario 2 4.10 34 2 years Mot. Act./ Swimming/ S. Therap./ Psycho.
Hugo 1 5 33 3 years Assoc./ S. Therap.
Table 1. Characterization of children with ASD.

Source: Research Data.
Note. * Scores range from 15 to 60, and the cutoff point for ASD is 30. S. Therap.= Speech Therapist; Psycho =
Psychopedagogue; Assoc. Association; Mot. Act. = Motor Activities.
2.2 Instruments
For the observations, filming was performed with a digital video camera, as this
feature allows the recording in detail of the observed situation and the review of the scenes,
allowing the analysis of behaviors not observed a priori (Kreppner, 2001). Sociodemographic
data and routines and characteristics of children with ASD were seized from a characterization
form prepared by the authors. Although children with ASD had the diagnoses before this
research, due to the heterogeneity of symptoms, characteristic in cases of ASD, the CARS scale
was also used, whose validation evidence for use in Brazil was published in the study conducted
by Pereira, Riesgo and Wagner (2008).
2.3 Procedures
For data collection in schools, all ethical precepts were followed according to
Resolution No. 466/2012 of the National Research Ethics Committee of the Ministry of
Health (Comissão Nacional de Ética em Pesquisa/Ministério da Saúde - CONEP/MS), passing
by the Ethics and Research Committee of the Science Center of the Federal University of
Paraíba, approved under Protocol number 480/10. To record the interactional episodes (IS),
two sets of filming were done in each class, contemplating the moments of the classroom and
schoolyard. Before filming, the teachers were informed that they should act as they usually do
in the school routine.
For data analysis, of the 20 minutes filmed of each situation (classroom and
schoolyard), 10 minutes were fully transcribed by the first author of this paper. Two classes
were filmed from each school, but of the eight transcripts, in only two of them the filmed
environment was the same (schoolyard situation, school 2, in João and Mario’s cases), because
the classrooms varied according to the age of the children, and the schoolyards because they
have more than one available at school 1.
The arrangement of these environments and the activities performed were different,
being described in the case studies with a view to favoring the understanding of the variations
of the episodes and their respective influences. According to the theoretical perspective used,
activities and objects available in the environments are considered in the analysis because
they constitute interactions and mediations. It should also be noted that the classrooms had
basically the same configuration with a combination of ventilation and artificial and natural
lighting from fans and windows, the presence of mobile desks suitable for children’s sizes, as
well as books, toys and accessible school supplies to them.
Data analysis did not address the verbal behaviors of children with ASD, as it was
not possible to grasp them properly through filming due to the following factors: distance from
the researcher, direction of the child’s face during such emissions and interference from noises
and external noises. Therefore, even considering the relevance of these data, they could not be
included in the analysis. Observation data are presented from four case studies, considering the
episodes in quantitative and qualitative terms. According to Ventura (2007), the case study can
be used in quantitative and qualitative approaches, in different fields of knowledge, highlighting
the scientific rigor required for data planning, analysis and interpretation. According to the
author, naturalistic case studies are rich in descriptive data and focus on a reality in time
and place in a complex and contextual way. Sanini, Sifuentes and Bosa (2013) highlight the
importance of case studies in terms of atypical development.
Situations characterized by the presence of two or more participants (dyadic or polydiadic)
inserted in a given context (classroom or schoolyard) and during an interactive flow involving the
participants’ behaviors in terms of initiative, response and continuity/feedback are considered
complete IE (Zanon, Backes, & Bosa, 2015). These behaviors can be both the teacher’s and of the
typical children or of those with ASD. Thus, interactive behaviors can happen as long as common
attention is maintained; therefore, the IE is considered interrupted when one partner shifts focus
or changes activity. However, it is important to differentiate the terms “adequate response” (Lemos,
Salomão, & Agripino-Ramos, 2014) and “complete IE”, since, in the latter, besides the response of
the child with ASD to the behavior initiated by the other (child or teacher), it is necessary to present
a new behavior that indicates continuity or feedback to the behavior of the child with ASD.
3 Results and discussion

The quantitative aspects of IE are presented in Table 2 below. In general terms, there
was a higher frequency of incomplete IE, as it may be justified by the socio-communicative
difficulties of children with ASD (Martins & Monteiro, 2017; Zanon, Backes, & Bosa, 2015).
According to Camargo and Bosa (2012), they demonstrate difficulties in understanding the
social situation, initiating, directing or maintaining attention for more than a few minutes.
These episodes can be compared to what Silva (2010) points out as a disengagement event,
whose peer tries to get the other’s attention and is not able to capture his/her attention.
According to the author, the adult can often draw the attention of the autistic child, but tends
not to continue the actions that were the initial focus of the exchange. In this research, this
characteristic was observed in the teachers’ behaviors during the analyzed IE.
Classroom situation Schoolyard situation
Child Complete IE Incomplete IE Complete IE Incomplete IE

Total Total
F % F % F % F %
Pedro 19 6 31.6 13 68.4 20 7 35 13 65
João 20 7 35 13 65 16 3 18.7 13 81.3
Mario 15 3 20 12 80 10 5 50 5 50
Hugo 30 10 33.3 20 66.7 5 1 20 4 80
Table 2. Interactional episodes set in the classroom and schoolyard.

Source: Research Data.
Next, qualitative analysis of these data are presented answering the following
research questions: What happens in common in these interactional episodes? With whom
are interactive exchanges established? How is the mediation of teachers characterized? How
do autistic children participate? In addition to this, a script was elaborated with information
covered in these case studies as shown in Figure 1.
Figure 1. Diagram of information covered in interactional episodes.
3.1 Case studies
• Case 1: Pedro (4 years and 6 months old)

Filming in the classroom context recorded a directed activity situation: a painting on
a sheet of paper using gouache and ink dropper. At this moment, the children were sitting in
their chairs and the teacher walking around the classroom and giving instructions for the task.
Of the IEs established in this context, six of them were considered complete. The qualitative
analysis of these episodes revealed that there are in common, at these times, aspects such as:
object manipulation, physical support or verbal support, instructions and information directed
directly to Pedro
Regarding the teacher’s behaviors directed to Pedro, it was observed that she offered
physical help, but did so by continuing the behaviors already started by the child. The same
thing happened in the conversations; many times the teacher directed instructions to Peter when
he was already performing the action mentioned by her. When analyzing Pedro’s behaviors in
this dynamic, it is highlighted that he adequately responded to various verbal and nonverbal
behaviors of the teacher; and performed his task independently, observing the objects available
and demonstrating initiative toward them. Although Peter showed little initiative toward the
other children, he got close and looked toward the actions of those who were close to him.
In relation to the behaviors of typical children directed to Pedro in the classroom,
there were glances directed to him and invitation, to play or sit next to him, without mediation
of the teacher. It is worth mentioning the type of activity that was being performed in this
context, because, in general, the children interacted little with each other and with the teacher,
remaining, most of the time, dedicated to the painting activity. At the end of the activity and
waiting for the time to go to the schoolyard, without directed activities, the children sang some
songs sitting in a circle on the floor. In these moments, there were behaviors of invitation to
play for the other children in relation to Pedro, besides behaviors of affection, such as touching,
smiling or hugging, on Pedro’s part, both in response and on his own initiative.
In the schoolyard situation, the teacher and the children grouped at different times
according to the toys used and the games that took place. These games were sometimes started
by the children, sometimes by the teacher, who, in most cases, watched the children playing
freely and approached in case they needed help. The physical environment was characterized
by a covered area, with natural lighting and ventilation, delimited in the form of a large square,
with sand on the floor and different toys such as tunnels, different stairs, slides, swings, buckets,
shovels and small shapes.
Regarding the IE established in the schoolyard context, seven complete interactional
episodes were recorded. Qualitative analysis reveals that they occurred at times involving the
manipulation of objects (toys). In this context, higher frequencies of visual exchange, more
initiatives on Pedro’s part and longer duration of IE were observed when compared to the
complete episodes that occurred in the classroom. Considering the teacher’s participation
during the interactions established in the schoolyard, different strategies were observed to
insert Pedro into play, requesting, for example, that the typical child repeated a behavior that
Pedro had shown interest. Regarding Pedro, the active behaviors in the interaction stand out,
denoting his understanding of the environment and the non-verbal behaviors present in it.
The teacher, in turn, perceived these Pedro’s behaviors and performed gestures and physical
supports, both notably from the interest and behaviors shown by him.
Another relevant aspect refers to the behaviors of the typical children directed to
Pedro, having been frequent: directed look at the child with ASD, invitation without mediation
of the teacher and demonstration of affection. Unlike the classroom, the children addressed
Peter more often and for longer. Such behaviors evidenced the reciprocity of children’s behaviors
in interactions considering the teacher’s mediation. Although the children’s invitations to play
with Pedro occurred without the teacher’s mediation, it is important to emphasize that she
approached and helped to continue the established and initiated interaction between the
children. The characteristics of these interactions are exemplified from this complete IE in the
schoolyard, whose dyadic situation shows that Peter initiates and ends the interaction:
Teacher: With her back to Pedro and her arms crossed, she looks at the other children / Pedro:
He stands in front of the teacher, looks towards her face, looks at her arm and extends his arms
up towards the teacher. / Teacher: Leans toward Pedro, uncrosses her arms and looks at him
smiling. / Pedro: Stretches the teacher’s arm, lightly grasping her elbow skin with his fingertips
and looks in this direction. / Teacher: Reaches out her arms behind Pedro’s back, makes finger-
tip movements on Pedro (tickling), then hugs him / Pedro: Pedro’s hand comes loose from the
teacher’s elbow as he is hugged by her, he looks across to where the children are running, turns
away from the teacher and walks in the opposite direction.
The data obtained from the interactions established in the schoolyard corroborate
Camargo and Bosa (2012) when they consider that, in this environment, the child with ASD
is more requested by the group, acts more independently and expresses his/her intentions
better, besides being more frequent the smiling behaviors and displays of affection than in the
classroom context. One of the characteristics of this case refers to the fact that, by the age of the
children, the time of their activities in the schoolyard and the space used were different from
those of older children. This strategy allowed a schoolyard situation with less noise and visual
information, more clarity regarding the physical space and arrangement of objects, which may
have favored Pedro’s adaptive and interactive behavior.
• Case 2: João (3 years and 3 months old)

Filming in the classroom context recorded a group activity situation regarding the
presentation of sounds (rattle, clock, for example) and music. During the filming, the children
were sitting in a circle on the floor, together with the teacher, and João was walking around the
room manipulating different objects that were within his reach (a cart, posters, glue, for example).
During the seven complete IEs observed in the classroom, João showed interest in
objects by manipulating different objects within his reach, some unrelated to the proposed
activity. In this context, besides object manipulation, adequate responses were observed by João
and little information and instructions directed by the children or teachers directly to him. As
for the teacher’s behavior towards João, she addressed him by bringing him to the group only
in his turn to perform the activity. Due to João’s behavioral characteristics related to interest in
objects and responding appropriately to dyadic situations, between him and his teacher, such
a strategy favored complete IE.
As for João’s behaviors, although he presented behaviors of isolation as he moved
away from his peers, he responded appropriately to the mediations and instructions directed
at him. When observing an object being manipulated by another person, although he did not
show initiative directed at the person, he showed behaviors of initiative towards the action or
the object. As an example, when watching the teacher with the rattle in hand, he approached,
took the rattle, smiled and began to move it up and down.
Upon completion of the classroom activity and before heading out to the schoolyard,
the teacher and children listened to music, manipulated the rattles and danced. Then, the
teacher took João’s hands, moving them along with the music and the other children, and
placed his arms around another child’s neck. Although João withdrew his arm, they both
smiled and looked at each other. Later, other children approached João, showed affection, such
as touching and hugging, and made invitations without the teacher’s mediation.
In the schoolyard situation, the environment was characterized by a small space,
with only a small climbing frame that has a slide, a platform with obstacles on its surface and a
tunnel at the bottom. In this context, some children played hide and seek, others played on the
slide, and others played with the assistant teacher, while João walked around, towards the gate,
climbed and slid without, however, engaging in any play with his classmates or the teacher.
In relation to the three complete IE, it is understood that the teacher performed
few mediations among the children in the schoolyard situation. João behaved in this context
according to his interests, addressing the available objects and toys, demonstrating initiatives
towards them and also actions necessary to manipulate the items.
Considering the dynamics of the schoolyard, the teacher in relation to João and the
children in general showed a less active participation in relation to the classroom, observing
and intervening in situations where the children needed some kind of help. At the end of the
filming, the teacher used verbal explanations in order to explain and draw attention so that
João could look through small cracks in the toy, with the children at the bottom of it. This
example of a complete IE in the schoolyard, started by the teacher and finished by João, is
described below:
Teacher: She approaches João, points towards the children and says: João, your friends are down
there! Look here through the hole! / João: Stops walking and looks through the hole toward the
children. / Teacher: Still pointing, says: Oh! Down there, look! Can you see Marina there? / João:
He moves his face closer and keeps looking towards the children./ Teacher: Looks at João, smi-
les and says: “You found Marina, very well!”. She touches John, points to the hole and continues:
“There is one more here! Come here, look!” / João: Looks in the direction the teacher pointed,
looks away at the child who goes down the slide and goes toward the slide.
During this play initiated by the teacher, João and the children responded
appropriately, looking and smiling at each other. It should also be noted that this is the first
year of school life for most of the children in the classroom observed, as well as João’s, who
has been attending school for nine months. Thus, in relation to the interactions initiated by
the teacher, it is understood that she leaves John a little freer, approaching at times when she
realizes that he is more “available”, as occurred in the schoolyard situation or in his turn during
the accomplishment of the task in the classroom, complimenting and encouraging interaction
through feedback
• Case 3: Mario (4 years and 10 months old)

Filming in the classroom context recorded an activity situation in the book, namely:
sticking paper balls in a number. During the filming, the children were sitting in their chairs,
divided into groups of four or five students; the teacher walked around the classroom guiding
the activity.
The three complete IE occurred during the activity involving the use of materials/
objects. The teacher used physical support and verbal feedback in these episodes, demonstrating
to the child, from compliments, the appropriate behaviors that he had performed. As an
example of this, we quote: the teacher, sitting next to the child, speaks while leading the child’s
hand towards the little balls: Oh, Mario, take it! The child with the teacher reaches for the paper
and takes it. The teacher says: Go. The child passes the paper from the left hand to the right
hand and sticks the ball on the sheet of paper. The teacher says: Cool! Very cool!.
About the teacher’s behaviors, she showed physical support, verbal and gestural tips
for performing the activity directed dyadically to Mario, besides pointing behaviors as she
explained the activity or called his attention to continue the collage. Literature in the area
indicates that adult child-directed speech is essential for development and that specifically
child-directed teacher speech with ASD facilitates classroom practice and socially competent
child behavior (Chang, Shih, & Kasari, 2016; Irvin, Boyd, & Odom, 2015).
In this context, on the one hand, Mario’s participation during the activity was
characterized by higher passive behaviors, especially in order to initiate interactions. On the
other hand, Mario demonstrated understanding of the demands of the environment through
adequate answers, smiles and absence of avoidance behaviors, remaining seated next to the
others and making the collages, indicating that he understood the demands of the environment.
The schoolyard was the same as that described in the analysis of child 2 (João). In
this context, some children played “catch”, others played going down the slide, others simply
ran across the yard while Mario walked around, towards the gate, going up and down the slide
without, however, engaging in any play with the children or the teacher; though he would look
towards them for brief periods.
Among the 10 IEs, five of them were completed, showing Mario’s participation and
the mediation of the teacher. The duration of these episodes was considerably longer than in
the classroom context. The interactions observed in the schoolyard context were characterized
by dyadic interaction, since the teacher addressed Mario directly, inviting him verbally and
non-verbally to the games, giving instructions and praising his participation. Thus, although
Mario showed fewer initiative behaviors, he counted on the teacher’s mediation to favor his
interactions.
Considering the dynamics of the schoolyard situation, the teacher showed more
behaviors directed specifically at Mario than in relation to the other children. For example,
verbal explanations sought to explain through instruction or draw his attention during the
running play hand in hand with him, initiated by the teacher, encouraging him to climb the
stairs, run across the platform and down the slide, along with the other children. This play
occurred over and over, characterizing most of the minutes of filming in the schoolyard.
At the aforementioned moment, Mario responded appropriately to the teacher and
also showed initiative, since during the breaks given by the teacher in this playing situation,
he initiated actions such as: climbing the slide, running down the platform, or even running
again towards the stairs, evidencing starting the game again. However, in both contexts, there
were few behaviors of the other children directed to Mario. It is understood that, although the
teacher performed different types of mediations and feedbacks, these were directed to Mario in
isolated terms, not in interactional terms.
Thus, it is emphasized that, just as the teacher performed mediations favoring Mario’s
behaviors directed at tasks, objects, actions or plays, she should also perform mediations in
order to bring children closer, enhancing social interaction, since it seems to be an emerging
area in Mario – emerging in the sense that the child, while unable to do it alone, provides
clues from his behavior and characteristics that, with help, he would do it. The following is an
example of a complete classroom IE during a structured activity:
Mario: Looks at the book, runs his hand over the glue and makes a face./ Teacher: Lightly leads
Mario’s hand to the shredded papers and says: Let’s go, Mario! Sit up right! Take the paper, stick it
in! / Mario: Looks at the task, takes the paper, glues it and takes his hand away. / Teacher: Very
good! Look at Mario’s, it’s getting pretty! / Mario: Smiles / Teacher: Points to the shredded paper
and says: Go, Mario, get the other one! / Mario: Takes another piece of paper, glues it and rubs his
fingers over the glue./ Teacher : Let’s go, Mario! Take more! / Mario: Takes another paper, glues it,
looks at the task and smiles./ Teacher: Yeah! Get more! / Looks at Mario’s task, smiles and claps./
Mario: Claps his hands and smiles. Looks toward the teacher and looks at the assignment./
Teacher: Points to the papers and says: Go, get more! and addresses the other child.
Regarding contexts and peer interactions in school inclusion situations, studies

(Sanini, Sifuentes, & Bosa, 2013; Schmidt et al., 2016; Watkins et al., 2015) state that, on
the one hand, both free contexts and directed contexts can promote the social development
of children with ASD, but the freest ones tend to be longer lasting and more spontaneous.
On the other hand, authors such as O’Hara and Hall (2014) argue that free environments
such as the schoolyard can be used as settings for interventions based on the structuring of the
environment and graduated orientations, since it was observed from empirical data that only in
the presence of teachers and other children the interactions and engagement of children with
ASD with their peers is lower.
• Case 4: Hugo (5 years old)

The classroom context shoot recorded a directed activity situation regarding a
dictation of numbers. During the filming, the children were sitting in their chairs, grouped at
small tables, along with other children. The teacher, standing, walked around the classroom
while calling the children’s attention to the activity.
Regarding the complete IE (10), it is noteworthy to point out that many of them
happened due to the activity avoidance behavior demonstrated by Hugo, who avoided the
activity, but returned and executed it in response to the teacher’s verbal and non-verbal
requests/mediations, characterizing the interactional episodes. In this dynamic, the teacher
used, in relation to the typical children as well as Hugo, the same instructions to perform the
activity; although with Hugo, she directed it dyadically due to avoidance behaviors. Then, the
teacher approached Hugo inviting him to get up from the floor and return to the table to do
the activity.
Specifically in relation to Hugo, during the activity, there were times when he got
up and left his chair, going to the floor, lying down and staying there until the teacher led him
back to the activity table where the other children were. Although Hugo showed avoidance
behaviors, needing the teacher’s mediation to perform the activity, he also demonstrated to
respond appropriately to the mediations and instructions directed to him.
In relation to the children, during the minutes observed and recorded through the
filming, they were not observed behaviors directed specifically to Hugo. This may have been
due either to the presence of an observer, the context of individual activity requested or the
avoidance behaviors. However, it should be noted that, on the same day, at other times that
Hugo showed greater availability, the children showed greater interaction. At the end of the
task and before going to the schoolyard, the children were left without directed activities, some
put their materials away, in their bags, others finished the activity, and others gathered in a
queue to then go to the yard. At this moment, Hugo addressed the children who were close to
a mirror and there were, both, behaviors of affection, such as touches, hugs and smiles, and an
invitation without mediation by the teacher, when they touched Hugo’s hand bringing him
closer to them or showing and sharing a toy, for example.
Given the above, we agree with authors such as Lemos, Salomão, Aquino and
Agripino-Ramos (2016), Martins e Monteiro (2017) and Schmidt et al. (2016) who highlight
the role of school for children with ASD and the importance both in relation to socialization
and learning of these children. As described earlier, Hugo presented behaviors that indicate
both social and academic learning, since he wrote the numbers from the teacher’s instruction, as
well as understanding the context clues and spontaneously addressing himself with the group.
However, notably, he needs mediation and the learning of other skills that favor his school life.
In this direction, Sanini, Sifuentes e Bosa (2013) point to regular school as a context in which
the child with difficulties finds more advanced models of behaviors to follow.
Filming was done in the schoolyard, a large open area with different toys and sand on
the floor. During the filming, the children went to different toys, some alone and some in small
groups. At that moment, there were other classes also using the same space. The teacher walked
around the yard watching and approaching the children when they needed help.
The situation of the schoolyard was characterized by little behavior of the teacher to
perform mediations that favored social interactions between children in general, she observed
them at a distance, approaching in case anyone requested. About the only complete IE observed
in the schoolyard situation, it is noteworthy that it was characterized by the initiative and
continuity of the child with typical development, during play and a toy of Hugo’s interest and
in a dyadic situation.
Regarding Hugo’s behaviors, we point out that he showed interest in the swing and
seesaw, and this can be analyzed from initiative behaviors directed at these objects. Much of the
schoolyard situation was characterized by swing play, with no evidence of interactions with peers
at these times. However, to play with the seesaw, another child is needed, and Hugo, although
looking at people, showed no initiatives directed at them, denoting the need for mediation.
However, one of the children noticed and made an invitation with no teacher’s mediation to
play on that apparatus. During the play, there were exchanges of looks and demonstrations of
affection of the child with typical development directed to Hugo. It is interesting to note the
respect, sensitivity and empathy shown during that play by the child with typical development.
This child, when observing Hugo’s non-verbal behaviors, started, continued and ended the
play asking after a few minutes: “Do you want to stop?”. At this moment Hugo looks at her
and comes down from the seesaw, and headed for another toy.
When analyzing the situation described, Camargo and Bosa (2009) and Irvin, Boyd
e Odom (2015) stated that inclusion of children with ASD in regular schools provides, on the
one hand, social contacts favoring their development and that of other children, as they live
and learn from differences. On the other hand, to Kasari, Locke, Gulsrud and Rotheram-Fuller
(2010), the schoolyard, although it is a good setting for social skills interventions, it seems to
be more difficult for the child with ASD because it is often chaotic and crowded.
In general terms, the teacher showed few mediations directed at Hugo. Although it
showed avoidance behaviors when requested by the teacher in situations related to the task, the
same may not happen in freer situations, such as the schoolyard. Thus, the teacher could use
the most pleasurable situations for the child, in order to establish contacts with him, providing
a bond that could possibly extend to other contexts and situations. The following example
demonstrates a full classroom IE initiated by a typically developing child directed at the child
with ASD and completed by the teacher. It consists of a sequence of actions that resemble a
way of greeting:
Child: Reaches his hand out towards Hugo./ Hugo: Looks towards the child’s hand and hits his
hand./ Child: Raises his thumb toward Hugo./ Hugo: Imitates the action with his thumb, looks
towards the child’s hand, approaches and closes his hand towards the child’s hand / Child: Imi-
tates the action, lowers his thumb, closes his hand and looks at Hugo./ Hugo: Looks towards the
child’s hand and hits him with his hand. With the opposite hand and thumb extended, he hits the
child’s hand./ Child: Looks at Hugo and stays with his hand closed towards him./ Hugo: Looks
at the child’s hand, imitates the action and hits the child’s hand. / Child: Looks at Hugo and stre-
tches his index finger towards him./ Hugo: Looks at the child’s hand and touches his finger./ Tea-
cher: Behind Hugo, puts both hands under his arms, helps him to sit down and says: Let’s finish !.
That being said, Sanini, Sifuentes e Bosa (2013) reveal that research on school
inclusion and social interactions of children with ASD in natural environments has shown
encouraging results. The authors highlight the importance of addressing the symptomatology
of children with ASD, in terms of adaptive, social, cognitive and linguistic levels.
4 Final considerations
Given the aspects addressed, the importance of social interaction for the acquisition
of skills related to child development is emphasized. From the case studies presented, we
understand the benefits of school inclusion in terms of both atypical children and other children,
who develop skills related to tolerance, respect and empathy through school experiences. Based
on the data and discussions presented, it is intended to contribute to consider the participation
of children with ASD in school interactions, in order to understand how they interact and
through which mediations.
We understand that the difficulties imposed by the ASD do not necessarily
constitute limitations that completely prevent interactions. Although it is not possible to
establish correlations between behaviors and contexts, nor is the objective of the present study,
it is important to analyze social interactions in these scenarios, verifying the participation of
children with ASD and their peers, considering the context, the type of activity, the teachers’
mediation and the mutual influences from the concept of bidirectionality.
When considering the data of this study, in general, we found that it was common
to the IEs that completed dyadic verbal and non-verbal mediations addressed directly to the
child with ASD and use of objects, mostly among teachers and children with ASD. Interactive
exchanges were observed less frequently between peers, suggesting the importance of teachers’
mediation from a more interactionist perspective, balancing the situations in which they directly
address the child with ASD and those that address the other children favoring joint activities.
Regarding the participation of children with ASD and their peers, the following
aspects were highlighted: children with typical development did not demonstrate avoidance
behaviors and addressed children with ASD more frequently during free classroom activities.
Variations were observed in terms of the characteristics of each class, the children in general, as
well as the characteristics of the disorder and its respective degree of impairment.
For example, in some cases children with ASD showed greater functionality in their
behavior and less interaction; in others, they showed more appropriate response behaviors and
less initiative; or greater impairment in verbal comprehension or functional language use and
less impairment in socialization or academic behaviors. Finally, for each of these peculiarities,
the role of appropriate mediation is emphasized in order to enhance social interactions.
From the limitations of this study, we suggest that further research with observational
methodology be carried out, contemplating a larger number of observations, in order to
minimize the influence of the presence of the observer. The participation of independent
judges for the analysis is also suggested. We should emphasize that other studies may consider
the children’s verbal behaviors in the analysis, and also that additional instruments involving
assessment of the characteristics of the child with ASD are used, since the scale used in this
study is more directed to identifying the degree of impairment.
We highlight the relevance of this study, since there are few researches with observational
methodology in naturalistic contexts in this area, especially those that address school contexts
and classroom and schoolyard situations. We also emphasize that the presentation of data
from case studies favored a greater understanding of the inter-influences between the analyzed
aspects. We hope that the data can provide evidence for research, evaluation and intervention
in the area of school inclusion of children with ASD, in order to favor strategies that promote
interactions among them and their peers, as well as reflections on the role of mediations in the
development of children with ASD.
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Submitted on 05/06/2019
Reformulated on 20/08/2019
Accepted on 27/08/2019

Lemos, Nunes e Salomão, 2020. Inglês

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Autism and school interactions Research Report

Autism Spectrum Disorder and School Interactions: Classroom and

Considering the heterogeneity of the cases, Table 1 shows the characterization of

Table 1. Characterization of children with ASD.

3 Results and discussion

Child Complete IE Incomplete IE Complete IE Incomplete IE

Table 2. Interactional episodes set in the classroom and schoolyard.

Figure 1. Diagram of information covered in interactional episodes.

3.1 Case studies

• Case 1: Pedro (4 years and 6 months old)

• Case 2: João (3 years and 3 months old)

• Case 3: Mario (4 years and 10 months old)

Regarding contexts and peer interactions in school inclusion situations, studies

• Case 4: Hugo (5 years old)

1990. Retrieved on July 30, 2019 from http://www.planalto.gov.br/ccivil_03/_ato2011-2014/2012/

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